Chapter 6

After a few more sips of her drink and Ryder downing half his beer, he stood and extended his hand to her. "Would you like to dance?"

Isobel smiled and took his hand, following him to the dance floor. A slow song had just begun, and Ryder pulled her close, his grip firm and confident. At first, she was taken aback by his boldness, but soon she found herself relaxing into his embrace. The sensation of his strong arms around her sent a current of electricity through her, and she rested her head on his shoulder. Ryder tightened his hold, and Isobel's heart began to race, butterflies somersaulting in her stomach. They swayed gently to the rhythm of "Speechless" by Dan + Shay, Ryder's hand moving to the back of her head, stroking her hair softly.

As the song neared its end, Ryder loosened his embrace and leaned back slightly. With his thumb and forefinger under her chin, he lifted her face towards his and kissed her. Isobel responded at first, but as his kisses grew more intense, she pulled back and took a step away.

"What's wrong?" Ryder asked, concern in his eyes.

"I need a drink. Can we go back to our table for a while?"

"Of course." Ryder took her hand and led her back to their table, where Bella Rose and Wren were engrossed in conversation, their faces only inches apart.

Isobel picked up her drink and took a few small sips, while Ryder finished his beer in one gulp. He raised his hand to catch the attention of a waitress, signaling for another round.

Taking her hand in his, Ryder asked, "Are you having a good time?" He had to speak louder to be heard over the music.

"Yes. Thank you for inviting us."

Ryder scanned the room, looking for the waitress. Not seeing her, he stood and pushed his chair back. "I'll be right back. Gonna grab another beer. You need anything?"

Isobel lifted her glass, showing him it was still mostly full. "No, thank you. I'm good."

Ryder returned a few minutes later with four beers and another Bahama Mama for Rose. He placed two beers in front of Wren and kept the other two for himself.

As the night wore on, Ryder and Wren continued to down their beers, mixing in shots of tequila. They occasionally returned to the dance floor, where Rose taught Isobel the Cowboy Cha Cha and the Watermelon Crawl.

"Are you having fun?" Rose asked as they left the dance floor.

"Yes, it's alright," Isobel replied, though her expression betrayed a hint of unease.

Rose noticed the look on her friend's face. "Hey, boys. We're heading to the little girls' room. We'll be back in a few."

Isobel followed Rose, grateful for the break.

Rose turned Isobel to face her. "What's goin' on, girl? And tell me the truth."

Isobel took a deep breath and slowly let it out before beginning. "I'm not sure about Ryder."

"What do you mean? He seems great."

"He seems to drink a lot for starters. When we were dancing for the very first time, he started kissing me... hard."

"I'm sorry, Isobel. I don't see the problem here. Enlighten me."

"I don't know what kind of past he has, but I get the feeling that he's had his way with a lot of girls and is expecting me to do the same."

"Oh, I see. Just tell him you want to take things slow. I'm sure he'll understand."

Isobel shook her head, "I don't think he'll be game for that."

"You worry too much." Rose leaned toward the mirror, wiped some stray mascara away and fixed her hair. "Let's get back out to the guys. Alright?"

"Sure." Isobel did a quick mirror check of her hair and make-up, then followed Rose back to the table.

Ryder looked up and smiled as Isobel approached, his eyes lighting up. Despite her reservations, Isobel couldn't help but feel drawn to him, and she decided to let go of her worries, at least for tonight.

Ryder and Wren had created a pyramid out of their empty beer cans. Fifteen by her count, as Isobel watched them struggle with the top one. They successfully placed the final can, threw their arms up in the air, and yelled triumphantly.

Ryder leaned her way. "You're back." His words were slurred, and his head swayed back and forth. "You're so pretty," he said, sliding his hand up her inner thigh.

Isobel firmly grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand out from under her dress. "Ryder, you're drunk. I think you need to go home."

Ryder leaned back in his chair, his eyes half-closed. "Shush. I'm not drunk, you're drunk."

"Ryder, I haven't even finished my first drink."

Ryder grabbed his chair and scooted over until it was touching Isobel's. He pushed her hair back and tucked it behind her ear. "You're beautiful. Your eyes are blue like the ocean." He started to lean in for a kiss, but Isobel quickly ducked to the side, causing Ryder to tip over onto her lap. He was out cold.

"Ryder?" Isobel shook his shoulders. "Ryder!" She tried again. Nothing. She let out a big breath, leaned back into her chair, and pulled Ryder's shoulders up so his head was resting on her thigh instead of hanging off. She looked down at his face, relaxed in such peace. Isobel ran her fingers through his thick brown hair and swept it to the side, off his eyes. His hat had fallen off when he fell over, so she reached down and picked it up, placing it on the table.

Wren and Bella Rose finally returned from the dance floor to find Ryder still passed out.

"What happened?" Wren asked.

Isobel pointed to the pyramid of beer cans. "That happened."

"Oh. I'll round up a couple of boys to help us get him out of here so we can get him home."

Once they had Ryder safely buckled in his truck, Isobel turned to Wren with her hand out, palm up. "Hand me his keys, please."

"What? Why?" Wren asked.

"Because Ryder is obviously in no shape to drive and neither are you."

"She's right, Wren. Let her drive him home and I'll take you home."

Wren spun to face Rose. "That sounds great to me." He tossed the keys toward Isobel without even looking, letting them fall to the ground at her feet.